Biography

Richard Milford Blatchford was born in Stratfield, Connecticut on April 23, 1798. In 1804, the family moved to
Lansingburgh, New York (near Saratoga), where the Rev. Blatchford took charge of the Presbyterian
Church and Lansingburgh Academy in near-by Waterford. In 1805, the Rev. Blatchford became a trustee
of Union College in Schenectady and in 1824 he became President of Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in
Troy, New York. Blatchford became a political lieutenant in New York City for William H. Seward, and his state-wide
political advisor, Thurlow Weed, in the unsuccessful effort to unseat Jackson in 1832.

Appointed by Abraham Lincoln as Minister Resident to the Holy See/Papal States, 1862-1863. Member of New York state assembly from New York County 13th District in 1855. New York City Park Commissioner in 1872.

Other sources show his birthdate is April 23, 1798 born on Stratfield, CT. Married three times to; Julia Ann Mumford, Angelica Hamilton, and then Katherine Hone.